Vehicles equipped with passive entry, passive start (PEPS) functionality are known in the art. With conventional PEPS systems one or two keyless fobs are associated with a given vehicle. Such PEPS vehicle systems generally include a body control module or BCM in the vehicle which is operable to lock and unlock the vehicle doors, release the truck latch, start-up and turn off the engine, hook the horn and other auxiliary vehicle functions. The body control module is also operable to communicate with the keyless fob which has been authenticated to activate these vehicle functions.
The PEPS system communicates in one of two modes. In a first mode, a passive command is communicated between the keyless fob and the BCM as a LF signal such that a passive entry is enabled simply by lifting the door handle or a passive start is enable by pushing a start button on the instrument panel. Such passive commands require the keyless fob to be in close proximity with the BCM. In a second mode, an active command is communicated between the keyless fob and the BCM as an RF signal such that an active lock/unlock or a remote engine start is enabled by pushing a button on the keyless fob. Such active commands may be carried out when the keyless fob is a substantial distance from the BCM.
For security reasons, the keyless fob and the BCM are statically configured and permanently assigned transceiver IDs which only enable one or two keyless fob to operate a specific vehicle. In other words, remote keyless functions, whether passive or active, are supported on one and only one vehicle. As such, the procedure of associating a new keyless fob with a particular vehicle is complicated and time-consuming. In this way, PEPS-equipped vehicles in, for example, a commercial fleet or police fleet require a specific keyless fob for each vehicle in the fleet. As such, a fleet driver is limited to using the specific fleet vehicle for his or her keyless fob. Moreover, no fob variant exists that allows other vehicles within the fleet to be operated with a given keyless fob.
Accordingly, it is desirable to develop an efficient and secure manner for associating one of several keyless fobs with a BCM in one of several PEPS-equipped vehicles. In addition, it is desirable to configure a single PEPS keyless fob to be fully operational (passive commands, active commands and immobilizer functions) on more than one vehicle. Other desirable features and characteristics of the present disclosure will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background.